The government will be more secure from any North Korean threat by being the base of a key U.N. fund on climate change, the presidential office said Sunday.
South Korea's Songdo, a newly developed international town in the western city of Incheon, was designated to be the home of the secretariat of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Saturday after five rounds of voting.
"The hosting will bring as big an influence on improving the country's status in the world as ensuring security," Kim Sang-hyup, senior presidential secretary for green growth, told reporters. "Who would attack Geneva, Switzerland, with so many international organizations (based there)?" he asked, apparently referring to North Korea.
Hosting the Olympic Games or the FIFA World Cup can surely be a big boost for national interests, but the influence of housing an international organization is uncomparable to that because it is not just a one-time event, Kim added.
About 1,000 people are expected to work at the secretariat of the GCF with 190 member states in the mid- to long-term, according to Seoul officials.
The Korea Development Institute, a state-run think tank, earlier estimated the hosting of the secretariat of such a massive global fund would have a direct impact worth some US$380 million on the country's economy annually. (Yonhap)